The Salina Journal from Salina, Kansas · Page 25

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A Product of THE SAUNA JOURNAL man in the made-for-cable remake of Zane Grey's classic 1912 Western, while Madigan plays a rancher who turns to the mysterious drifter for help. Ed Harris and his wife, Amy Madigan, star in "Riders of the Purple Sage," which premieres at 7 p.m. Sunday on TNT. Harris portrays a notorious gun- Golden Globe Awards ?! p.m.Sunday, NBC Awards are presented in 24 film and TV categories- Sean Cpnnery is singled out for lifetime achievement and Tony Bennett Is slated' to perform. Innocent Victims 8 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday, ABC The fact-based miniseries follows the Wai of an Army sergeant who Is charged with murdering an Air Fowl captain's W»e and her two daughters in 1985 in North Car- ojiim. '••'*••-' :• • This week's highlights The Baby Sitter's Seduction 8 p.m. Monday, KSNW Keri Russell portrays a naive teen-ager who is swept into an affair with a wealthy, middle-aged executive whose wife died under mysterious circumstances. Kan*as Basketball 8:30 p.m. Monday. ESPN The Jayhawks entertain the Oklahoma Sooners in Big Eight Conference action at Lawrence. State of the Union Address 8 p.m. Tuesday, ABC. CBS, CNN, Fox, NBC President Clinton is expected to set the themes for his upcoming reelection campaign as he addresses a Joint session of Congress. The Innocent . 8 p.m. Wednesday, NBC Kelsey Grammer portrays a homicide cop whose case hinges on an autistic 9-year-oW witness. Mad Dog and Glory 8 p.m. Thursday, ABC Robert De Niro portrays a shy police photographer who is rewarded for saving the life of a gangster with the loan of a woman. Figure Skating 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, NBC Nancy Kerrigan is among the con- tenders'who will compete in the World Professional Championships. Kansas State Basketball 3 pjn Saturday, KSNW, WIBW, WDAF The Wildcats try to end a 10^ame losing streak on Missouri's home court. January 21-27,1996 LISTINGS FOR NORTH-CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST KANSAS ttwnim^jaiMgJMmiTTiiwwaflW Oteri earns laughs on 'SNL skits Philadelphia native has excelled in first season live from New York By FRAZIER MOORE The Associated Press NEW YORK — In the space of 90 minutes on a typical Saturday night, Cheri Oteri was a mouthy fatso on a talk show. She was Rita, The Woman on the Porch. And more. But that was then. Now, it's Monday morning. Closeted in her windowless office on the 17th floor at NBC, Cheri Oteri is writing two sketches for the "Saturday Night Live" that looms ahead. One she calls "Big Day," about a mother who tries to get her kids up in the morning. "My mother used to say that: 'C'mon, let's go! Big day!'" The other would team her with this week's host, Alec Baldwin, as a couple out on a date. Like her "SNL" com- padres, Cheri Oteri has the next 48 hours to whip QT c R| her material into shape. u cm "Everything has to be hi by 10 a.m. Wednesday," she says. "Then you go to the read-through." There, with executive producer Lome Michaels presiding, writers pitch their creations. And often, get shot down. "Who knows? I've got my fingers crossed." Viewers who catch "SNL" tonight (10:30 p.m. Central time) can see if "Still Dating" or "Big Day" makes the cut. But even if they don't, Cheri Oteri is likely to shine. She just stands out, and no wonder. She's funny, versatile, magnetic, and, by the way, a towering 5-foot-l. And then there's that name, a little whirlpool of a name which, heard even once, fastens to your brain like gum beneath a counter. Cheri Oteri! Say it loud and there's music playing! As recently as last summer, Cheri Oteri, • late of Philadelphia, was office-temping,in Los Angeles. She was also performing with the Groundlings, the improv group that graduated former "SNL" stars Laraine Newman, Phil Hartman and Jon Lovitz. Her TV experience totaled one commercial she has never seen. Then, just before the Fourth of July holidays, she was flown to Manhattan to audition as a player for "SNL." The night of Sept. 30, she and five other newcomers helped "SNL" kick off its 21st season. "I was so scared," she confesses. "I kept thinking, 'God let me get through it!' " She did, and then some, scoring a bull's- eye with fellow newcomer Molly Shannon as veteran hoofers Debbie Reynolds and Ann Miller in a talk-show spoof called "Leg Up." It's been a laugh a minute ever since.